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July Review and August Goals

So I’m late posting this month, having got back from two wonderful weeks in France where we had very limited access to wifi and therefore had a more or less total digital detox, which was actually rather nice. I like social media, but I do think taking a break once in a while is no bad thing!

July was a pretty good month (better than June anyway, although that wasn’t difficult). Work was really busy, which meant the final three weeks before my holiday passed in a flash, and I was pleased to be able to deliver my part of a pretty big project before I went, and hand it over in good shape. Fortunately the weekends were a bit quieter than of late, we enjoyed a BBQ with friends and I competed in my first race of the year (report here).

My goal for July was to do a sort of mid year review – check back in on the goals I wanted to achieve this year and see what I need to do to achieve them, and whether there’s anything else I want to add to the list. The second half of the year always seems to go more quickly for me – summer seems to pass in a flash and once the schools go back in September, Christmas (eek!) seems to come round at light speed!

My to do list wasn’t massive, but there were certainly a few old chestnuts that have been popping up over and over again, which I really wanted to get nailed this year. There were 22 things originally on my list for this year. So far I’ve done seven of them, and have made significant progress on another 4. Of the remaining 11, there is one that probably won’t happen this year for one reason or another, but the other 10 should definitely be achievable.

My plan at the start of the year was to spend a bit of time on the first of each month reviewing progress and setting my intentions for the coming month. That also helped me decide on my focus area for each month. I’ve not been very disciplined about doing that, so that’s another goal for the rest of this year!

August then. Well, scarily more than a week has already passed, but it was well spent eating cheese, drinking wine and spending time with the family. There should (hopefully) be a brief lull at work, so that will be a good chance to catch up on a few things that haven’t had my full attention over the past couple of months (although I’m only working one full week this month, winner!). And perhaps biggest of all, at the end of the month I wave goodbye to my thirties as I celebrate my 40th birthday on the bank holiday.

Focus for this month is going to be celebration. I’m not one for pretending my birthdays are not happening any more, I prefer to spin things out for as long as possible! My very lovely husband is taking me to Venice for the weekend, we’re also having a couple of nights away as a family to relax and enjoy a family wedding, and I have a lunch planned with my nearest and dearest on the big day itself. In between all of that, I also have a work trip to Sweden, so there’s a fair amount of travelling involved!

There will obviously be a number of opportunities for eating and drinking more/different food than I’d usually eat, and probably less opportunity than usual for exercise. It’s therefore going to be a good opportunity to practice moderation – enjoying treats but remembering that treats eaten daily are no longer treats.